The Door You Couldn’t Reach
by Shalan the Magnificent
Summary: AU They crossed over in order to save their world… their sacrifice stays with them to this day. When an opportunity arises to return to Amestris will they take it or will they let the chance pass? EdOC AlOC
1. Dreaming of Her

**Title: **The Door You Couldn't Reach

**Summary: **AU They crossed over in order to save their world… their sacrifice stays with them to this day. When an opportunity arises to return to Amestris will they take it or will they let the chance pass? EdOC AlOC

**Shalan's Say: **DAMN it's been a while since I wrote a FullMetal Alchemist story… HOLY COW sorry I was just marveling at my dumbosity… anyways Rae Mustang **(NOT KADY ****HAWKEYE(****D&D) OR ASUNA (WSSL) (though they're the same person)! YES! NO MORE MISTAKES!)** makes a reappearance (though it doesn't seem like it right now) for fans of "Dirt and Dust" and "Walking in Shadow Seeing the Light" you guys will LOVE this story I believe… anyways… Chris should reappear **(formerly Maria in WSSL)** and I should have A TON more fun with this one… PLEASE READ AND REVIEW

**Disclaimer: **I Do Not Own FullMetal Alchemist… or the pipsqueak himself… or his darling brother… But I DO own Rae and Chris (and their multiple personalities)

**Chapter: **Dreaming of Her

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Present Day; 1922 Munich, Germany

Her fingers traced his jaw delicately, sliding down to cup her hand against his skin and guide his lips to hers. Her scent invaded his senses, her taste whirling around his taste buds like an exquisite liqueur. "Rachel…" he muttered against her skin, he heard her sigh, felt her heart stop, her fingers tangle through his already knotted hair, he saw her soft blush, a currant red against cream. "You always look so beautiful… how do you do it?" He whispered as their foreheads pressed together. She chuckled as his hands cupped her face tenderly.

"Love… makes those we love the most, most beautiful in our eyes… Edward…" His eyes snapped open as he shot up in the bed, a sheen of sweat on his flesh. A cool breeze whispered across his skin. "Edward…" her voice echoed in his mind. His left hand lifted to touch the locket around his neck. The golden oval beneath his fingertips shone in the dim light of the room. He rubbed his thumb against the locket and closed his eyes, imagining the feel of her skin.

"Ed?" His eyes fluttered open again, only to have his brother's face come into view. "Edward are you alright?"

"Yeah… yeah I'm fine…" He ran a hand across his brow, his bangs plastered to his forehead.

"Good… your fever broke last night…" Al crossed his legs Indian style, wrapping his hands around his ankles. Ed looked over at him, his blonde hair clinging to his shoulder.

"Oh… that would be why…" he closed his eyes again and conjured up her image, her piercing cerulean eyes, her blushing skin.

"You made the decision… and I did too…" Ed felt his brother's hand on his shoulder. "It's been two years Ed…" he watched his brother's thumb caress the locket around his neck. "Hopefully she's moved on…" Ed's golden eyes dimmed with something near sadness and Al leaned his head against his brother's shoulder.

"Alphonse… do you really think she's moved on?" He whispered and his younger brother shrugged. "I hope she has…" Ed spoke almost reluctantly.

"No you don't… but it's okay… come on take a bath… we'll be leaving soon… and you're all sweaty…" Alphonse shoved him out the door into the hallway of the house.

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TWO YEARS EARLIER; 1917 Central City, Amestris (1)

Her hand twitched tentatively then rested on the circle. A pillar built itself up, destroying the battalion of armed soldiers. "RACHEL!" She turned, wiping a few sweaty strands of hair from her face. Her long black hair was pulled back in a ponytail, hanging down her back like a sleek mane. Her black tank top was soaked, plastered to her back with sweat. Her uniform pants and riding skirt were filthy with grime. Her boots crunched on the broken earth as she walked towards the speaker.

"Uncle…" she smiled as her uncle embraced her tightly. "How have you been one eyed jerk?" She chuckled and he drew away.

"You're never going to let go of that are you?" He rested a hand against the side of her face and smiled softly. Roy Mustang… nothing but an enlisted man… but powerful as the general he once was. His niece tilted her head as he left his hand resting on the side of her face.

"What's wrong Uncle?" Her blue eyes dimmed as they met his. Her heart stopped then began to panic as his finger traced the place where her locket used to be.

"Where's your mother's locket Rae?" Their eyes met and she watched his face sink. She bit her bottom lip guiltily.

"I don't know… I think I lost it when the gate opened," her eyes immediately averted and he sighed, looking up.

"What is it with the human beings around me? Is there anyone safe from the Elrics?" He seemed flabbergasted… and rightfully so.

"Roy… stop being a complete fool…" he stopped when she slid a foot back from him. He heard the dirt crunch beneath her boot.

"You gave it to him didn't you?" Roy rapped his knuckles against her skull and she looked at her boots as one of them traced a circle in the dirt. "Christ… Rachel Anne Mustang…" he searched her eyes as she lifted them. Cerulean bored into cerulean for a matter of minutes before he sighed and let their foreheads touch. "You are the fool…" she nodded as tears welled up in her eyes. His hands gripped her face, something that a memory used to do to her, and lifted her head up so that their eyes met again.

"How could I be mad at you for trying to make him remember you?" He smiled. She chuckled in return, tears rivering a path through the dust on her face. "How could I be mad…" He wrapped his arms around her as she buried her face into his shoulder.

"Alphonse went with him… didn't he?" She whispered against his neck and Roy nodded. "I hate this…" His hand stroked her hair gently.

"GENERAL!" They turned, Riza saluted momentarily then walked towards them. "The city has been secured… the portal though…" her eyes met his and he looked down at Rae.

"We can break it down…" Rae pulled from her uncle's embrace and rubbed tears away with the back of her glove.

PRESENT DAY; 1919 Resembool, Amestris

Her finger traced a circle in the calm waters of the lake, her cheek pressed against her bare arm. She closed her eyes and breathed in, taking in the sweet scent of spring earth and blooming flowers. A fish came to the top of the water and nibbled at her finger and she smiled softly.

"Now that's something I haven't seen you do in a while…" she sat up and looked over, her uncle's hand extended to her. "Babe you sure are hard to track down… you know that?" He pulled her up and she smiled. Her black hair reached her knees, long and straight, as soft as silk… Ed had always loved her hair… "You suddenly look sad… I'm sorry if I'm not the person you wanted to see…"

"Oh shut up Roy…" she forced a grin and flung herself into his arms. The general wrapped her up in a bear hug and she giggled.

"Another thing I haven't heard in a while…" He set her back on her feet. "I swear you look more and more like your mother everyday… except for the Mustang colors…" he teased and a cherry blush flooded her cream cheeks. "He always said you were prettiest when you blushed…" Roy cackled and she slapped his arm.

"He always said you were smartest with your mouth shut…" she retorted and he frowned for a moment as they stared each other down. Her thinly strapped sundress exposed part of the pale skin of her breasts and collar bone. The empire waist gown was knee length, made of a soft cotton, and from what Roy could tell, her first choice of clothing. The pearls in her ears shone in the bright sunlight, glinting as she moved.

"Yeah well he also said that his brother wasn't going to Earth with him didn't he?" Roy's reply cut her heart and he immediately regretted saying it. "I'm sorry Rachel… I didn't mean…" he looked away and for a moment there was utter silence. She bit her bottom lip and looked over his shoulder as a breeze picked up, whipping her skirt around her thighs. Her hair lifted up from her back like a nimbus for a few seconds, her bags rushing back from her face.

"So what is it that you tracked me down for?" She folded her arms and pursed her lips, her brow turning towards her mouth.

"I have something that I think you might be interested in…" he offered his hand to her. "Meet me at the car… bring a suitcase…" Roy turned and walked off. Rachel blinked. _What in the hell is he talking about? Crazy old man… that bullet probably sheared off part of his brain too…_

&&&

Present Day; 1922 Somewhere in Germany

"Are you alright Edward?" Al placed a hand on his brother's arm, gripping lightly. The older alchemist turned towards his brother thoughtfully.

"Yeah… I guess I am…" he leaned his head back against the headrest of the train. Al looked down and sighed impatiently.

"You've been telling me that for days Ed… what's wrong?"

"Nothing." Ed closed his eyes as he felt his brother lean back against the chair next to him. "Just Rae…" he muttered… Al rolled his eyes as he watched his brother's face relax into sleep.

"I wish I could bring her to you brother… I wish I could…" Al closed his eyes as well, breathing in his brother's scent… "But don't you love me?" he whispered. A hand rapped its knuckles on his head and he opened his eyes, only to meet his brother's ocher gaze.

"Of course I do Alphonse … why wouldn't I? I wanted you to be alive again didn't I?" Al looked down. Why in the world had he just said that? Ed had given up his right arm… then his entire self… there was no way that Ed felt anything for him but pure unadulterated love.

"Do you love her Ed?" The single question that had been floating in the air since they had come to earth finally burst from Al's mouth. His older brother looked at him. There was no emotion in his face but his eyes showed confusion and what appeared to be contemplation.

"I guess…" he turned his head to look out the window. As they paused in a train station… Ed could have sworn he saw her face in the crowd… _I guess I do love you__… I wish I could have told you that…_

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Earlier the date says 1922 is present day. Meaning that 1917 would be FIVE years earlier instead of TWO. But remember that 1922 in present day GERMANY is three years AHEAD of present day in Amestris. So keep that in your mind… just as a tally:

Present Day in Germany: 1922

Present Day in Amestris: 1919

Okay… this first chapter is confusing as hell… please continue reading on to the next chapter. There are a few things that need to be cleaned up… and they will be. Otherwise there wouldn't be a storyline huh? READ AND REVIEW PLEASE!

Shalan


	2. Home

**Chapter: **Home

**Shalan's Say: **Alright. There'll be a little bit of jumping around in this chapter… I'm going to confuse you a little… but the dates are clearly marked.

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One Year Later; 1923 Paris, France

Ed tapped his foot impatiently, chewing on a pen as he stared at the map on the easel in front of him angrily.

"We could go to America… he could have gone there…" Al scratched his head as his brother gave another angry sigh.

"Damn… damn… DAMN!" Ed stomped his foot on the ground. Al sighed and flopped back onto the bed of their small Paris apartment. The younger stared up at the fan on the ceiling with contempt… if only they hadn't stayed on Earth. "Stop thinking about your girlfriend and HELP ME!" Ed grouched.

"What do you want me to help you with? YOU seem to have everything covered." Al shot back. The heat of the Paris summer was getting to them both. Sweating even inside your own house was sure to make you a little annoyed. Ed leaned on the railing of the window, wishing for anything but still air, hot and heavy.

"America huh?" Ed said contemplatively, his eyes scanning the French streets. A flash of black hair caught his eye and he squinted, almost hopefully. His heart sank into his stomach when he realized it wasn't her… the longer he was away from her the more painful his days got… and he was starting to hate it.

"Yeah… I heard that they were bragging about having some new weapon… that could be it Edward…" The older blonde turned to look at his brother who lifted his head.

"You've stopped calling me brother…" Ed teased and the 19 year old blushed beneath his sweat soaked skin.

"I hadn't noticed really…" Al made a face and his brother chuckled.

"You want to go to America Alphonse?" The younger looked over at his brother with a curious glint in his eye. Ed turned as Al sat up, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Yeah… I think so…" Al looked at the ground.

"Okay… let's go…" Ed told him and the younger nearly choked.

&&&

One Year Earlier; 1919 Central City, Amestris

"Rachel we NEED you to do this!" The general across from her slammed his hand on the table. The young woman stared straight ahead.

"How do we even know if he's still there? What if they've moved?" She replied argumentatively. The general growled.

"You can find him! We need their help to do this…" He told her and she closed her eyes.

"So you want me to sneak across enemy lines… enter their permanent gate and crawl through to the other side? Why ME huh? Why not anybody else that you have under your control?" Rae snarled in reply. "You go get him GENERAL!" She stood up, knocking her chair back. She whirled so quickly her hair whipped through the air. She rested a hand on the window sill as she watched the battle rage outside the building. Her eyes dimmed as another battle, completely separate from the one below her, pounded against her chest.

"Rachel your expertise is required for this assignment… dear god don't let us down…" She closed her eyes and gripped the sill tightly. She felt the soft wood crumble beneath her hand and reshape itself into a dagger. A protective measure in place for the general.

"My expertise is in _alchemy_… not in tracking sir… if you want a tracker find yourself one… but do not attempt to use me to your advantage when there is no advantage to be found…" She turned to him, the knife in hand.

"Upon your return we will grant you anything you wish…" Her bangs fell and her subordinate, sitting in the same place as before, watched with wary eyes. The general across from them watched her as her muscles flexed, gripping the wooden dagger tightly.

"Anything? Even if it is as unrealistic… as bringing someone… back from the dead?" She looked up and slammed the wooden knife into the oak table so hard it splintered, within the same motion she turned her body and walked out the door to the office, her subordinate following her.

Four Months Earlier; 1923 Munich, Germany

"Rachel! Where are you going?" The blonde ran after her as she stalked out of the apartment complex. Her lavender eyes set her out of place in Germany… or on Earth for that matter… Her tanned skin was littered with freckles, something that her fair skinned companion gave her hell about.

"I'm going to fucking France…" Chris giggled as the older woman stormed down the street towards the train station. They had been hunting for the Elrics for near a year and since the day they had arrived they realized that woman weren't as free as they had been back in Amestris. As Rae thundered into the train station Christine followed as a running pace, attempting to catch up with the alchemist.

"Mind your French!" The younger finally panted as Rae spoke in German to the man at the counter. Chris frowned as Rachel yanked the ticket from his hand and stalked off. She wore a pair of mid-calf laced patent leather boots and a simple off the shoulder black dress. Her black double breasted pea coat hung just above her boots, buttoned and form fitting she was certainly one of the most beautiful girls in the train station. Her long black hair was pulled back in a ponytail high on her head.

"Shut your mouth Christine and take your ticket…" she spoke to her in English. The young blonde scoffed at her. Her short blonde bob was amazingly in style, something else that her counterpart made fun of her about, her neck encased in a bright red scarf, tucked into her own cream pea coat. Her ankle length navy blue dress clung slightly to her pantyhose as she walked, causing her to curse under her breath from time to time.

"How do women live wearing these stupid clothes?" Chris grumbled as they walked on the train. Rae snorted as her counterpart stepped onto the car and sat next to her.

"I don't know… I honestly don't know…" her fingers rose to play with the chain around her neck, only to find that it wasn't there.

"You keep doing that… you still haven't broken yourself of that habit after all these years?" Chris touched her superior's hand gently and Rae jumped.

"Huh? Sorry I was just thinking about something…" Rae looked up and closed her eyes as the train began to move.

"Thinking about what you're going to do to him when you see him huh?" Chris chuckled and Rachel blushed.

"I swear to GOD!" She grabbed at her subordinate who dodged the outright attack, giggling like a school girl.

Present Day; 1923 Liverpool, England

"Are you sure that you saw her Ed? You probably just saw her alter…" Al followed his brother with a sigh.

"No Alphonse I swear! I saw her… I know I did…" Ed's eyes scanned the crowd on the packed ferry platform. He stood on a pile of boxes, he may not had been as short but it was certainly easier to see people in the crowd when you were four feet taller than them.

"I know you're loony but I don't TELL you that…" Al muttered, rolling his eyes.

"What'd you say Alphonse?" He looked over when he heard the heavy thunk of his older brother landing next to him.

"Nothing brother…" Al looked off to the side with a snort. As they exchanged these comments the crowd began to clear as the next ferry began to load. Ed sighed and hung his head. "I told you… you were just seeing things…" Alphonse chided the older alchemist as they walked onto the ship to America.

"I guess you were right again Alphonse…" Ed sighed as they tramped their way into their room. The two (though reluctantly) had spent much of their (and the Heindrich's) savings to buy their tickets… as Ed refused to stay in a room where there was only one bed… and had managed to purchase two first class tickets… much to Ed's approval.

"You're still used to traveling in luxury…" Al snorted as Ed sighed happily, dropping back onto the bed.

"Well back home I had the military to pay for my trips…" Ed looked over at his brother. Al sat down on his bed and leaned over, his elbows on his knees. For a moment Ed was reminded of his father… the same pose… he smiled softly.

"And I wasn't considered a person so you didn't have to pay for me…" Al chuckled and the older laughed with him.

"Remember when we used to meet all those little girls and you used to just fall all over yourself?" Ed laughed out loud.

"Remember the first time we met Rae?" The laughter died and Al watched his brother's hand immediately rise to finger the locket around his neck.

"Yeah… I remember that…" Ed whispered, his voice nostalgic.

"And remember what an idiot you made out of yourself!" Al nearly fell on the ground as he laughed at his brother. Ed's cheeks flushed and he launched a pillow across the room.

&&&

Atlantic Ocean April 20, 1923

Ed walked to the side of the ship, leaning on the railing, his champagne glass clasped in his fingers. He hated formal events… but he figured that he had paid for it… he drank the rest of his glass and set it down on the table next to him as they cut through the waves. The deck was littered with well dressed people, including his brother, who was flirting dangerously with the girl on the deck. Ed smiled and closed his eyes, feeling the warm metal of her locket around his neck, the pressure of the gold against his skin. He wondered if it had been alchemically made for a moment then unbuttoned his collar and reached down to loop his finger beneath the chain, pulling it out of his shirt.

"It really is a pretty thing…" he looked at it. The locket was nearly an inch wide, that and a half long with a diamond set just below the center. A looping R was mixed into an A, creating an almost Marie Antoinette look. The metal was well polished from his constant attention but shone only dimly in the moonlight. He attempted to open it, futilely enough. "She must have sealed it before I left…" He chuckled and turned it over, running his thumb across that surface as well, drawing her fading image back into his mind. It had been three years… three years since he had seen her face… even longer since… he closed his eyes and felt the sea spray cool his skin.

_**Another summer day**_

_**Has come and gone away**_

_**In Paris or Rome...**_

_**But I wanna go home**_

_mmm Home_

Her laughter echoed in his mind as he pulled his memories back to the forefront of his mind. She swung in a circle, giggling like a little girl. They had been so young… too young for anyone else to understand.

_"If there was one thing you could have… what would it be?" He whispered teasingly and she smiled at him._

_"You…" her reply was simple… so simple that it had floored him._ He felt tears tug at his eyes, sadness build in his chest.

**_May be surrounded by_**

**_A million people I_**

**_Still feel all alone_**

**_Just wanna go home_**

**_I miss you, you know_**

Her smile didn't spread to her eyes. She grinned on that mask of hers but nothing could hide the tears that she had cried long ago. Her subordinate watched her, her eyes sad. Chris wanted to walk over and comfort her superior, tell her that they would find them… tell her that Ed and Al were probably just around the corner, waiting for them… but they both knew that would be a lie.

Rae spoke softly with one of the men in the crowd, her mind not focused on his conversation at all… instead she was comparing him to Edward… his short brown hair to Ed's long blonde… if it was even still long… for all she knew he had short hair now… his blue eyes to Edward's dazzling ocher… his high cheek bones to Edward's powerful face… his punctured German accent to Edward's smooth lyrical voice… she found herself lost in a place that Chris had dubbed "The Last Place Edward Elric Existed"… the place in her mind she had dedicated to his memory and his memory alone…

_**And I've been keeping all the letters**_

_**That I wrote to you**_

_**Each one a line or two**_

_**I'm fine baby, how are you?**_

**_I would send them but _**

**_I know that it's just not enough_**

He leaned his forehead against the railing almost angrily… how could he had been so stupid? So selfish? So oblivious? He had convinced himself that no one in Amestris would miss him… that as long as Alphonse was alright he could live with himself… that as long as the world was safe he would be alright… but that proved untrue… something that he just had to deal with…

_"Ed…" her voice spoke from behind him and he swung around. "You're home…" another tackle, another girl, another friend… but this time he wrapped his arms around her waist, his heart lifted if only slightly._

_"Rae…" He whispered, for a moment nothing bad was happening… for a moment he forgot about Eckhart and her plot… for a moment there was nothing but her._

_"I missed you…" their lips met, he was bruised and dirty… had just fallen out of the air onto the ground below… had just been tortured by his mechanic… but she didn't seem to care as their tongues tangled, their lips locked for what seemed only a second. His hands grasped her face, his thumbs just below her closed eyes. For that single moment nothing in the world mattered… not even the fact that they could die at any second._

_"Rachel…" he muttered as their noses touched, then the sound of the airships reached his ears. "No…" he drew away from her. She stumbled slightly as he stepped away from her._

_"Edward?" Her eyes drew into a frown of confusion._

_"No… I can't do this right now… no… not ever…" His face was panicked, frenzied, worried… she watched him… and understood… "I'm sorry Rae… forget about me please…" He knew that he would have to go back… he knew all too well…_

_"I understand…" her eyes filled with tears as she reached up and pulled her locket off. "Edward… take it…" she held it out to him. He shook his head. _

_"Rae I'm leaving… you know that right? I'm going back!" His voice raised slightly. She was being dense._

_"I know that… But I love you too much to let you forget me…" she pushed the locket into his hand, then turned, her toe digging into the dirt, and ran, back towards the Central Building… his heart sunk._

"Sorry Rae…" he whispered under his breath as he fiddled with the locket.

**_My words were cold and flat_**

**_And you deserve more than that_**

Her eyes scanned the party impatiently. Then her heart stopped, in her sight was someone that she did not expect. "Excuse me… pardon me… excuse… ALPHONSE!" She cried and he turned as he heard his voice… the color drained from his face… his heart stopped dead in its tracks… his body went completely numb and his mind ceased to function as she made her way towards him. The strapped periwinkle gown she wore accented her eyes, her short blonde hair pulled back slightly with a periwinkle headband… the soft fabric hung just past her ankles and fanned around her legs in a wide skirt… but that wasn't what he was paying attention to… his eyes were locked onto her face.

"Ch-Christine…" He choked as she stopped in front of him. His mouth was as dry as the Sahara, his limbs trembling. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her face into his neck.

"You've grown…" she looked up at him with tear filled eyes. He stared at her, she was mind numbingly beautiful… more so than he remembered… and she had that sparkle that his memories of her did not…

_**Another aeroplane, another sunny place**_

_**I'm lucky I know**_

_**but I wanna go home**_

_**I got to go home**_

Ed stared off into the dark waters… his eyes fixated on a spot a few yards out from him. He jumped a good foot in the air when he heard his name.

"Edward…" He turned around slowly, half hoping it was actually her. Her long black hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, her bangs brushing her cheeks like wings. A pair of dangling diamond earrings in her ears sparkled in the moonlight. Her deep blue dress was off the shoulder… and flared around her mid-calf. Her low heels were also a deep blue, accenting her dress.

**_Let me go home_**

"Rae?" He nearly kicked himself in the head. He reached out to her and within seconds she had thrown herself into his arms.

"Edward!" Tears dripped out of her eyes, spilling down across his black jacket. Her body trembled as he wrapped his arms around her tenderly, pulling her tightly against him. "Oh Edward…" She whispered, her breath hot against the skin of his neck. He buried his face into her hair, taking in a deep breath of her scent. His left hand stroked her hair, feeling the silky softness.

"I missed you, you know…" his lips moved… but he didn't hear any sound… even though she seemed to… because her grip on the back of his jacket tightened, to the point that he feared the fabric ripping.

"Good…" she sobbed. "I would never forgive you if you forgot me…" she looked up as his hands gripped her face, lifting her lips to his. She had grown from a beautiful girl into a stunning young woman, something he had known would happen… Her lips weren't those of an innocent teen, trembling from her first kiss anymore… though that was partially thanks to him… they were instead the soft, practiced lips of a woman who had been kissed passionately one time or another, again partially thanks to him. Their lips parted momentarily before he closed the distance between them. She smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck as their foreheads met, their lips hinging from there.

Her fingers raked through his hair, dragging down his back, catching against his sweat soaked skin, their lips locked as their bodies sang. Soaring ever upwards, wings widespread there was nothing in the world but the two of them… her legs wrapped around his waist so tightly that it never occurred to him that they were anything more than one person… nor did it occur to him that this also put his brother out a room…

&&&

"They're all gone…" Chris smiled. The two sat out on the deck of the ship. They had been talking all night, tirelessly and unceasingly. She giggled as he leaned forward slightly, finishing a story from when he and his brother had been travelling Earth.

"Yeah I guess they are…" Alphonse sighed, leaning back in his chair. "They're going to have a hard time keeping away from each other…" he frowned out over the water and Christine blushed. "Goof… why are you blushing?" He smiled.

"Well… where are you going to sleep?" She smiled nervously and he blinked.

"Damn… you're right…" he frowned. "Maybe…" he looked over at one of the chairs on the deck.

"Why don't you come and stay in our cabin?" She smiled again. He looked over at her, contemplating this. It had been a while since he had seen her, her smile. Of course before when he had seen her he was 13 and she was 18… not exactly her dream man… he smiled in return. His growth over the past few years had turned him into a close replica of what his father would have looked like as a young man… and closer to his brother's looks. Edward often complained that his younger brother had stolen his face.

"But… I couldn't… I mean…" he blushed beneath his tanned skin. She chuckled and stood up, offering him her hand.

"You haven't got anywhere else to stay…" she jerked him up and yanked him down the stairs towards her cabin.

"Yeah… but Chris…" she halted at her door and turned around to face him. He was a good six inches taller than she was, making him a good head above her.

"Yeah but nothing…" her voice was stern and he stared at her. Suddenly the tiny hallway was that much smaller. Suddenly they were cramped, uncomfortable. The tension that built itself around them like a solid brick wall was smothering them both.

"I'm… sorry…" he muttered as he realized how close they were, hardly inches were between them, the miniature hallway held hardly enough room for them to both stand one behind the other comfortably… much less enough room for them to stand facing each other.

"Why?" She looked up and he coughed uncomfortably then snatched her key and opened the door.

"Dunno… let's just go inside before someone decides they need to get into the bathroom…" he chuckled as they entered the cabin… the cow that had previously been standing between them had now grown into an elephant… something that was not in his favor at all.

"Good night Alphonse…" she whispered a little while later as he lay in bed.

"'Night Chris," he would have never imagined spending his first night on the ship to America with the one girl who made his knees knock and his heart flutter… the one girl that he was almost afraid of… Who'dathunk it… he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

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Hello it's Shalan… READ AND REVIEW OR NO MORE CHAPTERS! Please read and review… this will all make sense eventually… and I know that the sexual tension in that last bit was overwhelming and you guys were probably going. DAMN IT ALPHONSE! But there's a reason behind all of this… READ AND REVIEW

Shalan


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